Demon Dynasty

2025 likely. 2024 is possible but probably just a brief taste for both him & the FD to see where he's at and for him to see what's required to play at the next level a la Chandler in 2022. His second half at Casey so far has seen a step up in consistency and attack at the ball in the air. He's a natural in terms of kicking action at the sticks and has beautiful 'sticky' hands when marking. Plenty of upside potential and for those who remember, i see him as a similar style player to that of the Duke but with a much more reliable kicking action.... IF he is willing to put the hard yards in. Smart footballer but needs to build the body to acquire the confidence & from that, the ability to impact at AFL level.

Absolutely THB. Fingers crossed his rehab sees him freed up a little more, allowing him to wind back the clock somewhat. We'll have a better idea where he's at after the next two weeks at Casey.

Correct..... Grundy was taking approx 56% of CBs before he was dropped and roughly 50% of around ground ruck work. Since then Max has taken approx 80% to 90% of CBs with JVR providing the chop out for the balance. Ruck contests, Max anywhere between approx 60% (eg; vs Nth) to 90% (eg; vs Lions). Max vs Grundy, especially at CBs....chalk & cheese! Momentum in matches too often lost whenever Grundy takes up significant time in the middle. Yes JVR took 38% of ruck contests against North. Now admittedly the FD were no doubt looking to manage Max but this is still a hefty ask for the young forward to take on in any match. With Petty gone for the year, we now have only one genuine tall KF who is fit and firing at AFL level. Albeit still learning the ropes as a rookie. JVR doing a sterling job though, both in the ruck and in a general forward sense. We 'might' see T-Mac available in a few weeks. Yes i realise he his available now but i'm talking getting him up to speed for AFL via the VFL. That's still at least two weeks or more away imo. In the meantime we can't afford to risk JVR in the ruck. Hence it is looking like Grundy comes in to play a role and no doubt cover for Petty along with taking the bulk of the forward ruck work and CB chop out role instead of JVR. While that's great from a ruck POV and protecting our young colt, i still feel Grundy is not the medium to long-term answer. Much rather we gave Scache a run in the next two weeks. He's a better forward vs Grundy In every sense but can also take most of the ruck contests up forward and at CBs instead of Roohey. Won't happen but imho a mistake and an opportunity (to trial Scache in the next 2 weeks) lost.

Reading between the lines, if that is possible with a Clarry interview... Is there a disconnect between player, the HPT and the coaches/assistant coaches ideas as to what he has to tick off at training vs where each of them (including Clarry hinself) 'thinks' he is at recovery wise. I get the impression Clarry believes he's been right to go for a while but is being held up by the either the HP process (or head of) and/or one or more of the coaches. Possibly just the HP dept! In other words, Clarry believes it's just a training session to get through, which in his eyes is a minor thing with a few easy hurdles, but that he may be blocked by someone (or others) imposing overly severe hurdles (in his eyes). I get the impression he is skirting around all that. Trying not to blurt something out along those lines and aware that it would not be a good look to go public with any sort of disunity type issue no matter how miniscule, small or something a little more significant (for him)?

An exciting part of a new coming of age for this club. Loved how he took the game on with his pace and dash. He was great to watch in full flight and some of his runs down the wing will be etched in my memory forever. Hairs standing up stuff. Was sad to see him go and hope this doesn't end up being his swan song.

Rumour has it they were concerned for your welfare

Team & Player Ratings to Rnd 21, 2023 vs H&A Season 2022 Very good signs with the majority of player ratings either near or in front of their 2022 ratings now bar May, Harmes & Melk. Not highlighting anyone within approx 10% as this can easily change over a few matches should they happen to out-perform their average rating. Some might also be playing a diff role vs 2022 so that needs to be taken into account. All eyes on Clarry's return! Fingers crossed. Player 2023 Rating 2023 Rank 2022 Rating % Change vs 2022 2022 Rank Change in Rank vs 2022 C Oliver 5.285 1 5.320 -0.66 1 0 C Petracca 4.773 2 4.456 7.11 2 0 A Brayshaw 3.853 3 3.839 0.36 5 2 Jack Viney 3.707 4 3.971 -6.65 3 -1 T Rivers < 3.703 5 2.423 52.83 18 13 Max Gawn 3.555 6 3.643 -2.42 8 2 J Jordon > < 3.452 7 3.164 9.10 9 2 Steven May 3.188 8 3.971 -19.72 3 -5 B Grundy 3.159 9 - - - - Ed Langdon 3.149 10 3.109 1.29 11 1 L Hunter 3.080 11 - - - - Jake Lever 3.049 12 2.703 12.80 14 2 C Salem 3.048 13 3.363 -9.37 7 -6 Jake Bowey < 2.945 14 2.856 3.12 13 -1 T Sparrow 2.903 15 2.665 8.93 16 1 A Tomlinson < 2.803 16 2.079 34.82 22 6 H Petty < 2.718 17 2.392 13.63 19 2 J Harmes > 2.670 18 3.082 -13.37 12 -6 M Hibberd > < 2.649 19 2.613 1.38 17 -2 A N-Bullen 2.494 20 2.688 -7.22 15 -5 K Chandler < 2.388 21 - - - - K Pickett 2.267 22 2.118 7.03 21 -1 Judd McVee 2.254 23 - - - - J V Rooyen 2.239 24 - - - - B Fritsch < 2.230 25 1.936 15.19 27 2 T McDonald 2.054 26 1.967 4.42 26 0 Joel Smith > 2.000 27 2.239 -10.67 20 -7 Ben Brown < 1.941 28 1.762 10.16 29 1 C Spargo > < 1.886 29 1.981 -4.80 24 -5 J Melksham > 1.532 30 1.947 -21.31 25 -5 T Woewodin 1.406 31 - - - - J Schache * 1.375 32 - - - - B Laurie > < * 1.300 33 - - - - D Turner < * 1.075 34 - - - - Team Rating 70.84 69.48 1.95 * Played less than two full matches (in total) < Subbed out at least once or more (player rating could be comprised somewhat) > Subbed in at least once or more (player rating could be comprised somewhat) Stats courtesy of footwire.com & wheeloratings.com

Scache got one or two minor looks early in the season and hasn't been looked at since. Might be a bit late for the FD to be experimenting with new options. Would be surprised to see him come in but imho he's probably a better answer than Grundy in a genuine forward sense. He can also provide a chop out for Max & JVR in the ruck in small stints. Give him the next two weeks to show something. If not Grundy comes in for the last round against the Swans.

Round 21, 2023 Blundstone Arena - Kangaroos vs Demons Didn't watch the match just the mini Kayo version. Listened to the radio broadcast but doesn't reveal all that much. Team rating on par with the season average. The bottom 6 well ahead so looks like we batted pretty deep on the day. So what's with Hunter's result? A massive rating for anyone let alone a winger and over 100% up on his average season rating! So was that how it appeared on the day, did he have a big impact? In summary... 26 effectives (the most on the day alongside Ziebell) @ 79%, 5 one percenters, 5 clearances, 2 rebounds, 5 inside 50s, 3 tackles, 9 score involvements, 6 intercepts, 339 meters gained and a reasonable 4 turnovers. Speaking of Ziebell, it felt like he was everywhere on the day in that first half. Intercepting everything and disrupting so many of our forays forward. Even 10 minutes in i was wondering when we were going to put a cooler on him but he just kept repelling at will it seemed. Did anyone notice a change up from the box here in an attempt to lesson his impact? Tracc also had a big influence on the game it would seem? Gus, Jordan, ANB and Bowey rating well. JVR seemingly a very good game up 47% on his season rating!?? Demons Scoring Efficiency Disposals Per Goal 26.93 % In50s Goal 21.70 Conversion % 53.60 Tigers Scoring Efficiency Disposals Per Goal 35.20 % In50s Goal 22.70 Conversion % 47.60 Player Rating Rank Season Rating to Prior Rnd % Change vs Season Rating L Hunter 6.050 1 2.915 107.55 C Petracca 5.900 2 4.713 25.19 A Brayshaw 4.900 3 3.797 29.05 J Jordon 4.150 4 3.383 22.67 Jack Viney 3.700 5 3.707 -0.19 T Rivers 3.675 6 3.705 -0.81 J Bowey 3.600 7 2.907 23.84 Max Gawn 3.250 8 3.575 -9.09 C Salem 3.225 9 3.030 6.44 J V Rooyen 3.200 10 2.175 47.13 S May 3.000 11 3.199 -6.22 Jake Lever 2.975 12 3.053 -2.55 A N-Bullen 2.800 13 2.478 12.99 T Sparrow 2.700 14 2.915 -7.38 Ed Langdon 2.600 15 3.179 -18.21 Joel Smith 2.550 16 1.892 34.78 J McVee 2.350 17 2.249 4.49 K Pickett 2.300 18 2.265 1.55 K Chandler 2.200 19 2.400 -8.33 J Harmes 2.100 20 2.772 -24.24 J Melksham 1.725 21 1.504 14.69 H Petty < 55% 1.625 22 2.707 -39.97 M Hibberd > 30% 1.300 23 2.589 -49.79 Team Rating 70.58 70.54 0.05 Top 6 28.38 26.29 7.93 Bottom 6 12.30 9.23 33.26 < Subbed out / TOG % > Subbed in / TOG % Stats courtesy of footwire.com & wheeloratings.com

Yeah was and possibly still is a fair way behind on the pecking order Roost. Petty out might change things but Goody will most likely go with Smithy forward and Hibb as his replacement for this week. He may also have Grundy earmarked ahead of the Shack anyway. Shack could kick 6 and have a PB in the McGoos and still miss. Personally i'm not a big fan of Grundy as a 'mostly' forward nor a part-time onr. And was never sold on him as a permanent 22 as a mostly ruck option either. To repeat what i said months ago, would make a decent sub option IF Max was coming up against 2 serious / mature oppo main rucks and needed an assist after half time or later as required. Aside from that he's a no for mine, even as sub. Smithy the perfect sub, with the odd run in the 22 as we saw yesterday, in order to keep him fully primed and match fit.

In: Clarry, Scache, Hibb Out: Harmes, Petty, Smith Sub: Smith Haven't watched the entire match just the Kayo mini but sounds like Harmes was either very iffy or average to ok depending on who was doing the watching. In 21/22 form Harmes would've been ideal as a cooler for Cripps. That role probably now goes to Sparrow. Unfortunately, for whatever reason, Harmes is a fair way off his last two years form/fitness it seems. Clarry and others would take the Cripps run with previously but wouldn't want to see Clazz getting that job first up if he's back. Scache a handy ruck foil for Maxy and he'll need the assist to combat Pitt & DeKoenig, remembering that we still need to preserve Max a little as best we can in prep for finals. Also allows Max to play a few more minutes behind the ball as well. Will be handy on Koenig when he's resting / pushing forward and to offer another tall intercept mark to assist May & Lever on occasions and to block/spoil some of the leading lanes of Curnow. Scache can stretch the Blues defence a little too, in a similar fashion to having BB in the team and if he performs well enough, Weitering may go to him at times taking the heat off JVR a little. Even though he's doing a sterling job as a chop out ruck foil for Maxy at CBAs and up forward, i'm not big on JVR having to play so many minutes here (as a young developing forward). Scache can take the chop out role away from JVR (aside from rare ones up forward if needed) allowing JVR to instead use more of his energy to impact the game as much as possible as a heavy hitting forward and work his butt off defensively, especially at ground level. Schache not great defending at ground level in forward 50 so it makes sense for him to take the ruck contests and have JVR focussing more on this side to assist the smalls & mediums. Play both to their strengths / weaknesses. It also means Smith back as the sub who imv is the best 'impact' option in this role. Scache also holds his own at CBs and is 'Ok' at ground level, not that dissimilar to Grundy, albeit Grundy will hit in alot harder at the contest post bounce. If we're being honest though, even Grundy is not the ground level post bounce beast we used to watch pre-injury at the Pies. Scache obviously not as good as Grundy at CBs after the bounce but can take a decent mark or two on the lead, offer an option higher up on occasions and pretty decent accuracy in front of the sticks. He's also not bad at tap work. Got the height and leap to go with anyone here. Having said that, all options outside of Petty pale a little in comparison and/or just aren't available / capable in terms of carrying injuries (BB who i doubt we'll see back at AFL level) or coming back from them eg; TMac....still weeks away from a call up even if ready from this week... & will need to find match fitness / form at Casey surely. Will need to find a filler obviously and one that not only holds his own as a TF replacemenf but who assists the team overall, especially Max and JVR. I don't feel Goody & the FD are keen on the Shack though. So more likely Smith will go forward for Petty. I didn't see enough of the game to know how Smith went. Did he play as Petty's direct replacement up forward? How did he go? Hibb in to counter the Blues' small forward bias and helps the likes of Bowey, McVee & Rivers with the ground ball battle inside D 50. JJ sounded solid. I would still prefer the more outside role that Woey offers but he's probably an additional pre-season & about a half season of game time at Casey away from getting to a level that sees him hold his place most weeks. It's a pitty as i love what he brings with ball in hand when he gets on the end of it. Who comes in as the sub if Smith stays in as Petty's replacement. Harmes or Grundy? Painfull timing with the Casey bye this week. VFL program is shizen.

Much of this on some bog ordinary pitches as well vs this last 20 years or so. The greatest i've seen in the red & blue Mercurial on either side made him so hard to play against. R.I.P. tulip

He's ready to play but imv would need at least a week or two at Casey to gain match fitness and form before being seriously considered. Earliest would be Rnd 23 but more realistically the final round vs the Swans IF he can get his match fitness / form at Casey to a level that warrants a call up. Tom McLazarus!!??

pyrrhic1 /ˈpɪrɪk/ adjective (of a victory) MFC supporters' when they believe they may have finally solved their tall forward hopes after tall forwards contributed to a number of victories, only to find them dashed by an injury to one of those tall forwards. "Petty going down is so bloody pyrrhic"

Layzie might wanna check your firewall. Think your DL account's been hacked by Jaded

Ha no i actually like Flagmantle given the [censored] year they've had. Rubbing their own arrogance in their face

Prefer Flagmantle

A bit more than a shower needed me thinks...

About as disturbing as rooting for Jeelong

The Cat's accuracy vs the oppo's keeps them in alot of matches

What Lou said 👍🏻👏🏼

Same as last week other than Sparrow for Woey??